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Amp selection for archiving (Read 3910 times)
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Amp selection for archiving
04/12/12 at 17:54:07
 
Hi,

I'm building an archival system primarily for pre-war 78rpm shellac recordings from the 1920's and 1930's. So far I have a Garrard 301 in a huge oversized CLD plinth with two Ortofon 309s and Expert's truncated styli. I have two McIntosh C8 pre-amps which are necessary for pre-RIAA equalization. I have a pair of vintage Klipsch Heresy II's which I eventually will want to replace with a couple full range drivers but I'm going to start off with them for the time being as I've already been using them for 12 years. My question is which amp would be compatible and ideal for my setup? The Torii, a pair of Zen triode, or Zen triode integrated?

thanks!

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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #1 - 04/12/12 at 20:12:49
 
Interesting! I think that with the speakers you won't need the power of the Torii. Reading your message I thought of the new Integrated. I love the sound of the single-ended EL34 or 6CA7, and think that could compliment the disc sound well. Then again, with the deep bass and rich midrange that can be had from 78s, the basic Zen amp with it's pure clarity could be just the ticket. So my two cents is to consider those two amps.
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #2 - 04/12/12 at 22:45:17
 
Hi 78, and welcome to the forums!

My first gut instinct is the same as Lon's... only I would likely just narrow it down to the SE34I.3.  It has a touch more warmth, weight, headroom when compared to the SE84C+.  The transparency is very close but you might enjoy it's forgiving nature in this set up.  Otherwise, you could upgrade it with VCAPS and clearly be pushing the envelope of what is possible.

Steve
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #3 - 04/13/12 at 00:05:18
 
Hi Steve,

Appreciate the quick reply. I tried emailing you through the site but an error code came up every time saying I had the four digit number wrong so I emailed Sarah.

The SE34I.3 it is! And I will go for the VCAP upgrade.

I'm a very serious record collector and it's only in the past year I discovered the magic of shellac. Even on my current HH Scott 299a and janky Thorens TD124 I've literally been blown away by the fidelity compared to vinyl, ironically I was expecting the exact opposite since I've never read such difference on any audiophile forum and people complain about the noise. I'm afraid if I'm this spooked by the holography now what it's gonna be like once my new system's in place! Honestly vinyl sounds dry and thin in comparison.  [smiley=mir27.gif]

I used to spend many days inside a vintage studio transferring old masters off 30 ips 2" tape through McIntosh amps so my 'benchmark reference' is nearly unbeatable. Of course not too many people interested in 80-90 year old music, but I believe historically poor transfer quality much to blame for that.

regards,
78 Arch
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #4 - 04/13/12 at 00:11:30
 
Hey 78, awesome! I know the sound of shellac pretty well. I grew up with a wind-up Victrola that was my Dad's parents' and then became his. I also had a friend who had several 78 portable players that sounded pretty darned good. The sound on those discs can be astonishing. I'm a big fan of early jazz and hot dance, so I'm a big fan of the music too.
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #5 - 04/13/12 at 01:24:14
 
Lon,

The fact that shellac sounds charming on such primitivity of a Victrola is a true testament to its quality. It dawned on me last year that shellac has a groove width four times greater and rpm speed two to three times faster than vinyl. The material itself has a very unique sound signature as well obviously. I have some 78s from the 50's that were pressed on vinyl and they do not sound as good as shellac. I own thousands of extremely rare vinyl LPs and 45s from the 60's and 70's and I have very little interest in them anymore, just as much sonically as the actual music. I'm only 31 years old btw but I much prefer pre-war music now. I'm amazed how many 78s (race records) I've found already that have NEVER been reissued in any format yet either.

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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #6 - 04/13/12 at 03:22:21
 
I know. I've heard shellac on really fine systems too, it's amazing. I have tons of pre=war music on cd, because I do cd, I know it's not the ultimate sound and there's much better in the analog realm, but for a number of reasons I'm a cd person who loves pre- and post-war music, mainly jazz.

I have a few friends who collect 78s, mainly of Texas bands of the country swing variety, much of which has never been on any other format, it's a lot of fun for them. Would be frustrating for me. I know the thrill of the hunt, but the thrill went out for me about fifteen years ago when I as in my forties and struggling to define and rally into my final years of my state career with a wife who was not really supportive at the time with my music habit. Just can't imagine collecting records again, vinyl or shellac, cds are easy and there is so much out there to discover and enjoy!
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #7 - 04/13/12 at 06:56:53
 
With your high post count here I'm surprised CD's would be your source format. I just read Steve's article "Potential Fidelity of CD's vs LP's" from 2001. I would've thought most using Decware amps would be primarily analog only. I don't say as criticism but mere observation.

I do have one question before I order the SE34I.3. If at some point I decide to combine the signal before the pre-amp instead of sending to two separate pre-amps and only use one channel input on the SE34I.3, is there any problem with doing so? I know this is a simple question but I know very little about electronics. If not a problem would I just turn the volume knob of the unused channel all the way down?

thanks,
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #8 - 04/13/12 at 11:30:12
 
Well, when I started becoming obsessed with music, much of the music I desired to collect was not available on lp or very hard to find, this was before I got interested in the sound of recordings as well. I made due with tapes and tapes of the lps from others. Then the cd revolution began, and suddenly hundreds of lps I'd been wanting to hear became available at once, and hundreds to follow. My course was clear. I found ways to make cds sound better, Decware was a big help in that department. I discovered cabling, isolation of components, power conditioning. I will clearly admit the sound of vinyl and shellac is amazing, but I've learned to really love the sound of digital done right. And so I have collected over 15,000 cds and some amazing equipment for playback.

As for the "one channel option": yes, you could turn one channel way down. In the earlier incarnations of the Integrated you could keep one on standby or even off. Alternately if desired you could use a very high quality "Y" adaptor to connect both amp channels to one preamp channel.
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #9 - 04/13/12 at 19:48:32
 
Well, I have to tell you the cleaning and storage process of shellac drives me a little nuts. My filing system involves one cardboard filler pad, a white cardboard hole-less sleeve around the filler pad, with another holed sleeve which holds the actual record plus two polyethylene sleeves around the former for just ONE shellac record deemed too rare for my 'regular' not-rare-enough filing system which involves half the material with two records. I'm half-japanese so my attention to detail is OCD but I am archiving historical artifacts. I own several hundred CD's as well, but mostly ones which were never commercially released, or recently of Document Records to hear how mediocre their pre-war are, no disrespect to them as they're the only label in the world taking on such an immense task over the years.

It looks like I just missed an original version of the SE34I, with separate dual mono, in the classifieds for half the price of the newest version.  :-/ But I do like the look and function of the new meters.  :)

The only reason I'm keeping the two channels separate is so I can pick the lesser degraded of the two groove walls for transferring purposes but ideally for simple playback I'll eventually want to bi-amp an Altec 604 or similar. I forgot to mention most of my raving of shellac is based on true one speaker mono playback. The image depth, combined with the lack of near-infinite phase errors of two speakers which can't be understated, is in my opinion the holy grail of audio reproduction. When the holography doesn't allow you to not listen actively, that is a rare experience. With vinyl it was borderline, but with shellac it really grabs you by the cojones.  :D
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #10 - 04/13/12 at 19:58:20
 
Oh, most of my shellac listening was to one speaker, so I know whereof thou speakest, and yes it's something else.

I just no longer seek "the holy grail" sonicswise. I want a system that makes most of my material sound really good, and with my CD/SACD sources and Decware speakers and amps and the good cabling and power conditioning I have I've achieved that goal. For me it's about the music far more than the sound itself.

Handling and archiving and using a collection of shellac discs requires more patience than I have! Kudos.

Document certainly isn't the ONLY label doing pre-war music, let alone the only one doing "race records" on cd, there are Yazoo and a few others for that genre. I'm much more a fan of jazz and hot dance and there are a number of good labels for that, my favorite being Jazz Oracle. I have every one of their releases, most with restoration and mastering by J. R. T. Davies, whose work I appreciate.

Anyway, I think you'll really enjoy the Integrated. Enjoy the long wait. Smiley
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #11 - 04/13/12 at 20:19:40
 
The long wait's the only thing keeping me from ordering right now! Three months actually isn't that long for custom audio but I've already waited a long time for all my other components.
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #12 - 04/13/12 at 20:28:37
 
And I did mean non-jazz pre-war. For sound quality I was very impressed with the recent Frog Blues & Jazz Annual CDs which come with the 'magazine'. They've only had two releases so far.
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #13 - 04/13/12 at 20:29:18
 
Lon,

I haven't picked up any of the Jazz Oracle stuff. What titles would you recommend?
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #14 - 04/13/12 at 21:27:00
 
Well, there's a chance a used one will come up. Jump on one if you see one and want one, as they sell within days!

And if you haven't tried them out, the Yazoo cds should have music that interests you and the sound is not bad.
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #15 - 04/13/12 at 21:33:03
 
Sam, I would say look through the catalogue and see what items look interesting to you and your tastes. I really like the Louisiana Rhythm Kings, the Red Heads, Hot Springs Arkansas 1937, the Jack Teagarden, the Eddie South, the Joe Robichaux and the Sam Mannings are fun as well!
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #16 - 04/13/12 at 21:47:39
 
Thanks Lon. I like all of it so a little advice from somebody whose taste I respect is helpful.
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #17 - 04/14/12 at 02:45:47
 
Lon,

At first I was thinking I needed two separate gain controls and four inputs but I realize I have all that on my McIntosh C8s already. Another simple question please, if I opt for the "straight amplifier" the most basic version with one input and no volume controls what would its gain be set at from the 'factory'? Would it be better just to control volume from my pre-amps? This would save me close to 25% of the price if they're 'redundant' and superfluous.

I haven't heard any Yazoo CDs or LPs before. Their output is much smaller than Documents but you got me curious how they sound now.

thanks,
78 arch

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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #18 - 04/14/12 at 03:08:48
 
The most basic amplifier will give you about two watts power, which may be enough with your speakers depending on your room. You could run it wide open and control the gain/volume from your preamps.  The amp has a "volume control"--not as easy to use as on the other amps, but usable. I think it might meet your needs, if your room is small to medium.

If you have the time the best thing to do is really to call and talk to Steve. That's the easiest way to reach him, and he's always talking. He can answer all your questions and give you the very best advice.
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #19 - 04/14/12 at 09:28:36
 
The site says their customer service is Tuesday through Friday only, I did try to PM Steve here but it wouldn't allow me before with less than 5 posts so I appreciate the effort.

In my previous post I didn't clarify I was referring to the most basic version of SE34I.3 which I'm pretty set on now. I'm assuming there no advantages to having volume controls on this amp when they exist on my pre-amp? I know you don't work for Decware but I'm trying to get this figured out asap, before Tuesday preferably, to minimize turnaround time on my order. I've been waiting ten months for my turntable, which still isn't finished, so I've become slightly anxious.

thanks either way,
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #20 - 04/14/12 at 12:51:45
 
Won't be any problem with the volume switch located on the new Integrated. In fact, you'll be able to play around with the volume levels between the devices, or if you leave it turned all the way up it's practically "invisible". . . .

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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #21 - 04/18/12 at 22:42:48
 
Lon or anyone else,

I missed Steve's calls today and haven't been able to get a hold of him afterwards so thought I'd try to suss this out here as my questions are pretty simple and more to do with my own lack of basic experience and knowledge with electronics.

Does not having volume controls, the attenuator, create a shorter hence higher quality signal path, however slight? If I do opt to have no volume controls on Rachel, I assume she operates at full gain, is there a chance I'd have to keep the volume control on my McIntosh C8's really low? My HH Scott 299a is 17wpc and I usually reference between a quarter turn(normal listening level) to half turn(loud listening level) on the volume pot but are volume levels equivalent btwn push-pull and SET amps in terms of watts?

thanks
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #22 - 04/18/12 at 23:30:34
 
Arch,

I think that you'll not have to worry, you'll have your preamp volume at quarter to three quarters probably for most use. And yes, there will be a slight improvement without the volume controls in the signal path, whether it's enough to make a difference in your circumstances (surface noise, preamps in the chain as well) is another question, but if you're not going to use them, why have them in there!
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #23 - 04/19/12 at 01:27:32
 
Lon,

No volume controls on the Rachel then!

I have a new dilemma though which I should have known earlier but I just dug out and read the owner's manual for the C8. My turntable will have two tonearms with two Stanton 500's with two different styli widths so I'll be able to instantly compare and find the best width for old historical shellac recordings with variable groove widths and degradations. I didn't realize till now that the C8's two phono inputs have two different impedance loads, phono 1 at 100k ohms and phono 2 at an adjustable 6.8k to 52k ohms. The Stanton 500 has a recommended impedance of 47k ohms. I have no other amps besides the HH Scott 299a, which I can't plug the C8's into from my understanding so I have no way of knowing which one or both of the phono inputs will work. If only one works with the Stanton 500 then I may have to go with two separate SE84C+ amps and just sum the channels from the tonearm cable with a Y-connector before the C8 (which I didn't want to do as I won't be able to isolate, select, and transfer the best condition of the two groove walls for mono archiving) or if both phono inputs do work then I can keep the channels separate on both cartridges and go with SE34I.3 as planned.

Perhaps I should seek advice on audiogon or other 78 forum?

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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #24 - 04/19/12 at 01:42:50
 
Well, it's possible one of the denizens here will know, and if you can reach Steve. . . but maybe audiogon or a blues forum, etc. . . . Sorry, you're in territory I've not trod before myself.
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #25 - 04/19/12 at 01:49:56
 
I appreciate your help though!

If I ever get this together, which I have no choice to, I'll be happy to send you a CD from it if you're interested.

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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #26 - 04/19/12 at 02:54:00
 
Sure, that would be fun! Smiley
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #27 - 04/20/12 at 16:19:47
 
Lon,

I'm thinking about the Torii instead now since it's true dual mono and I'll never need a more powerful amp. I wonder how it compares to the highly acclaimed McIntosh MC225? Of course my concern would be it being too loud for daily referencing? Would I defeat the purpose of the Torii if I were to run it less than quarter turn on its volume control most of the time, with over 75% attenuation?

Only three amps to choose from but I can't decide!
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #28 - 04/20/12 at 16:57:43
 
Well, I love my Torii. It's fantastic, and as you say has all the power you could ever need.

I will say though that there's an organic bit of magic the Integrated I had had that the Torii doesn't. That Single-Ended Triode thing. . . and I only went to the Torii because my speakers and the size of my room needed it. I adjusted and love the Torii for what it does to my three sources. But. . . as you don't need all that power (and really, you may NEVER need it) I'd recommend going with the Integrated. That amp just has something special, it's a subtle something special in comparison to the glory of the Torii.

I mean a dreadnaught sometimes makes more sense than a battle cruiser. . . and gets the job done "better."

To be honest, the definitive answer to your question would come from that future phone conversation with Steve.
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #29 - 04/20/12 at 23:26:55
 
Echoing Lon's thoughts, the Integrated is one helluva amp, providing power isn't the issue.
Mine barely gets off the stop in a 13' x 23" room, with 87 db. sens. single drivers.
Every Decware amp I've owned or heard has been a superior unit.
Good Luck on your hunt.
Don
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #30 - 04/21/12 at 00:28:13
 
I've been recommended by a 78rpm audiophile that I should not keep the signal stereo, that I should sum to mono prior to either of my C8 pre-amps.

If I do go with Rachel, the 'integrated' amp, and say I do use a Y-connector from one C8 main output into the left and right of one input on Rachel would that halve the voltage and the volume I'd get out of the speakers? Also I don't even think I care to have the ability to hear mono through two speakers.

Is there any chance a pair of the Model SE84ZSM and its 2.3 watts would be sufficient to drive my 94/db 8 ohm Heresy II? Considering how empty the Model SE84ZSM sub-forum is here perhaps that's the real ZEN I'm looking for?  :P

Eventually I'll want to upgrade to a pair of Zen Open Baffle speakers which is 95/db. So if SE84ZSM can drive my Heresy II's sufficiently then it would only get better when I upgrade to crossover-less drivers.

My thread on audiogon received no replies, the amount of audiophiles in the world doing what I have to do must be countable on two hands or less?

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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #31 - 04/21/12 at 00:38:53
 
OR the amount of audiophiles following a similar path and ON THE INTERNET may be very small.

Really, these are questions best answered by Steve. Hope you can talk to him soon.
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #32 - 04/21/12 at 01:05:06
 
I agree with you on that. This is so old school, most experts in this area probably don't even have an email account.  ;D

Some shellac record dealers still don't. Everything's by phone or snail mail.

edit: (dunno why smilies don't show?)
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #33 - 04/21/12 at 14:35:27
 
Maybe the relatively primitive way these recordings were made gives you that organic sound that you are raving about.

If it were me I would replace the speakers. The Heresy being 8 OHMS might not mate well with the DECWARE ZEN or SE34I.3 amps the way a 4 oHM speaker would.

Good luck, and don't breathe too much dust while looking around in those obscure shellac shops.
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #34 - 04/21/12 at 17:22:20
 
Rivieraranch,

Pre-mid 1920's were all acoustic recordings and they are primitive although they still have lots of charm and presence. Post-mid 1920's electrical recordings became standard and are non-ironically not primitive. Nearly every audiophile forum on the internet people can't stand the noise of 78s. They want black backgrounds but where did this psychological desire for metaphysical reality come from? I used to crave it too and the blacker the background the more annoying the slightest vinyl tics and pops could be. I too wanted and enjoyed pristine metaphysicalness not to get too philosophical on you. Quite the opposite with shellac has what I call white backgrounds, snowish noise which becomes indistinguishable from air, physicalness. As important as the background differences are, the foregrounds is what will astonish you. I've done true A/B test between shellac and vinyl. Vinyl doesn't come anywhere close to the depth and imaging of shellac. Yes you read that right, and I mean it 100%. A $10,000 mc cart can't compete with my $40(+$165 truncated tip stylus) Stanton mm cart ever. The source, the format, is number one in fidelity impact as we all know.

I already mentioned the differences in groove width and rpm speeds. To make a direct analogy, it's like comparing unmixed 2" tape at 30ips vs mixed 1/4" tape at 15 or 7.5ips. I used to spend a lot of time in a vintage studio listening to those formats through McIntosh MC240's.

Don't get me wrong, I've been collecting vinyl for 15 years, and have owned more than 7,000 individually selected LPs and 45s. Vinyl's a good analog source that sounds and looks pretty with super delineated vocals and instruments, while shellac's none of those it will simply grab you by the balls with inexplicable holography like you've never heard it, unless you're familiar with 2" 30ips tape. Please excuse my language I can't convey more accurately without it. Trust me I'm still flabbergasted by it, I reluctantly got into 78s because the music I was getting into was from that era, I never expected to hear what I'm describing now as most re-issues are either mediocre or poor and to top it off in digital format.

After consulting with a few other shellacfanatics, I think I've figured out my setup now. I'm going to sum the channels to mono before the C8's and then use another Y-adapter from each C8 to two different inputs on Rachel to revert back to 'stereo'. Until I upgrade from the Heresy II's I'm going to stack one on top of the other, probably with a stand in between so they're not actually touching, this way I'll have a single vertical wall of mono. I simply have no desire to hear stereo anything anymore.









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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #35 - 04/22/12 at 20:56:47
 
Can't listen to 'em so might as well show 'em.  8-)



The TD124 isn't my reference table btw.
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #36 - 04/23/12 at 11:00:46
 
Very nice.
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #37 - 05/26/12 at 13:45:27
 
I'm now running the C8 tape outs into the 299a's tape ins, which gives me the compensation curves although there's more color than I'd like at the moment. I didn't realize the C8s used negative feedback too when I first got them.  :'( But I'm sure I'll be very happy when I pair them with the zero neg feedback supercharged Rachel when she arrives.  :P







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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #38 - 05/26/12 at 15:04:12
 
Hopefully not too much longer to wait!
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #39 - 05/26/12 at 15:20:26
 
Still months away, can't complain when Decware's popularity's to blame!
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #40 - 05/27/12 at 02:09:33
 
My favorite radio station (publicaly funded) based out of Edmonton (I live in Calgary) has a musician named Roy who does a show on Mondays night called the shellac shuffle. Check it out on Internet radio if you can:

http://www.ckua.com/02/02/12/A-SHELLAC-SHACK-SHUFFLE---78s-FROM-THE-T/landing.ht...
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #41 - 08/10/12 at 16:16:01
 
About a week away now!!
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #42 - 08/17/12 at 02:50:28
 
The amp is on its way now. Can someone here give me some advice on how to bridge to mono with Rachel? I never received a response from Steve after asking a couple times already. I'm only going to be playing mono 78s, so do I still have to take a Y-connector from my C8 out to Rachel ins? And do I also need to purchase an extra wire to bridge the speaker outs? Never done this before and would like whatever I need already delivered when the amp gets here.

thanks,
78 arch
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #43 - 08/18/12 at 15:57:05
 
I think all decwares have the same way of bridging.
Taken from the Zen manual:

To bridge the amp into mono you simply series the output jacks. To do this, take a piece
of wire and connect the left positive speaker jack to the right negative speaker jack. The
two remaining jacks will be used to power the speaker.
Also, it is important to feed a signal into both the left and right input jacks
simultaneously. This can easily be done with a Y-Adapter cable with two male RCA jacks
on one end and a single female RCA jack on the other.
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #44 - 11/03/12 at 00:13:15
 
Right before Rachel arrived I blew my Klipsch Heresy speakers when I accidentally grabbed the volume knob instead of the channel balance knob and slammed it to full volume on my Scott 299 amp. Very stupid mistake I know. So when Rachel arrived I still hooked her up bridged to mono with one of my blown Klipsch Heresy's just so I could get an idea of the sound difference. My new speaker just arrived in the mail yesterday, a full range 15" Alnico Audio Nirvana driver. I hooked Rachel up to it, and lo behold my brand new driver sounds blown just like my Klipsch speaker. Certain vocal ranges, especially baritone, sound fuzzy almost identically with the Klipsch. Now this has me wondering, did I damage Rachel by playing the Klipsch with it? And in turn am I damaging my brand new Audio Nirvana driver by playing it with Rachel?

I have to say, the vocal ranges without the fuzz distortion, sound wonderful with Rachel but obviously I have to figure out what the problem is here. Anyone have ideas?
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #45 - 01/30/13 at 22:50:11
 
Update:

The distortion disappeared after about five hours of record playback, which did seem like an eternity when you're playing 78s limited to 3 minutes per side. But now months later and what I would approximate around 12 hours of playback time, both Rachel and the Audio Nirvana 15" alnico sound magnificent and are only getting better over time. Patience really pays off here.

Once I upgrade the C8's, in about half a year, to a S.E.T. pre-amp with tube power supply and tube roll off, turnover, and high cut filters I'm absolutely certain I'll never desire to upgrade in audio ever again. I can definitively say Rachel's marriage material even if I have to bridge to mono with her.

It's amazing to hear direct to disc both acoustic and electric recordings bring musical performances 100 years old back to life in some of the best fidelity possible.
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #46 - 01/30/13 at 23:00:01
 
Awesome! Your leap of faith paid off!

Decware amps are special, and I'm glad you have your Rachel.
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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #47 - 01/31/13 at 00:02:30
 
I do have one complaint which I don't think is a 'design flaw'. I have four inputs for Rachel and when I switch between them, she makes a VERY loud pop. It's loud even with the volume control's at 12 o'clock. At full volume, what I always play music at, the first time I switched the pop did sound loud enough to damage the speaker. So having to switch between my two C8's is a slight PITA as I have to make three adjustments on Rachel to do so: turn volume down all the way, switch input, then turn volume all the way back up. This is on top of the volume, turnover, and roll off corrections I have to make on my C8's for every disc.


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Re: Amp selection for archiving
Reply #48 - 01/31/13 at 22:20:15
 
Ok one more complaint. The attenuator makes a hum when it's not turned all the way down or up, and grows louder as it approaches 12 o'clock from either direction. Any way to get rid of this?
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